You are here

Local & State Briefs: Reality show to feature Lewisburg catfish farm

From Staff and Wire Reports

A national television network this week is spotlighting the work of a local catfish farm for inclusion in a new reality show called “Catfish Warz.”

Crews will be on hand to film the annual catfish tournament at Big Whiskers Catfish Farm in Lewisburg, something owner Lonny Parkhurst hopes will earn some much-needed attention to the sport and local agritourism initiatives. The tournament is scheduled from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday and costs $20 — $10 to fish and $10 to enter the tournament.

Grand prize for the biggest fish will be $500. A fishing license is not required.

“We’ve been working on the (show) for about a year, and it’s exciting for a lot of people,” Parkhurst said. “It’s a story about myself, who started this farm from scratch, and built it with the help of his friends. Part of what goes on is our big tournament that we have out here.”

Parkhurst said he’s seen the gamut of catfish sizes at his farm, but none have yet rivaled Big Mel, the 80-pound mascot of Big Whiskers Catfish Farm. The owner said participants need to bring their own rods and reels to participate in the event, as rentals run out fast. More information about the show and tournament may be obtained by visiting www.bigwhiskerscatfishfarm.com.

◆◆◆

Fire claims Lewis County resident

A Hohenwald citizen died in house fire earlier this week, according WSMV Channel 4.

About 6 p.m Monday, firefighters responded to a Beverly Avenue home in Hohenwald and discovered a body inside the structure. The person’s identity has not been released, according to the Nashville news station.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

◆◆◆

Farm City

Breakfast slated

The Maury County Chamber and Economic Alliance will host the annual Farm City Breakfast and will honor the Satterwhite Farm as the Century Farm of the Year.

A century farm award recognizes families who have owned and farmed the same land for at least 100 years.

The event will begin at 6:45 a.m. Friday at the Ridley 4-H Center, 850 Lion Parkway, Columbia. Tennessee Farm Bureau President Lacy Upchurch will be the guest speaker.

Maury County Information Technology Director Bill Wells reported this week that a new county website is only weeks away from being fully operational.

In an overview of the new site to members of the county’s health and environment committee Monday, Wells said one of the best aspects of the new site is its calendar, which includes the dates and times of meetings and holidays, as well as copies of meeting minutes and agendas.

The site will also feature an organizational chart of county departments. Wells said the website should be online within the next two weeks.

◆◆◆

Charter school bill advances

NASHVILLE — Legislation that would create a special panel to authorize charter school applications is advancing in the House.

The measure sponsored by Republican Rep. Mark White of Memphis was approved 9-3 in the House Education Committee on Tuesday.

The legislation is the amended version of a proposal that would have allowed charter school applicants in the state’s largest school districts — Memphis and Nashville — to seek authorization from either the State Board of Education or the local school districts.

Currently local school boards decide whether to authorize a charter application.

Under the measure that advanced on Tuesday, the nine-member panel would be appointed by the governor and speakers of the House and Senate.

There are currently 48 charter schools in Tennessee.

◆◆◆

Former Henry County court clerk accused

of theft

PARIS — A former Henry County court clerk has been arrested after $29,000 was found missing from her office.

According to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, agents arrested Deanna Treece, of Springville, on Tuesday.

Treece was indicted by a grand jury after an audit by the state comptroller’s office found approximately $29,000 had gone missing between 2007 and 2011 from the General Sessions Court where Treece worked.

The investigation revealed that Treece used checks that were sent in to open civil cases to replace money she took from the office. The computer system showed the fees to open the civil cases was still owed.

Treece was booked into the Henry County Jail on $10,000 bond. She is scheduled to appear in court on March 11.

◆◆◆

Company: 400 layoffs now

permanent

THOMAS TOWNSHIP, Mich. — A Michigan-based silicon products company says it’s making permanent the layoff of 400 workers at sites in Michigan and Tennessee, a move forced by a supply glut and trade conflicts with China.

Hemlock Semiconductor Corp. announced the layoffs in January and now said they’ll be permanent. They affect 300 employees at a site in Clarksville and 100 at its home base in Saginaw County’s Thomas Township, near Saginaw.

Spokesman Jarrod Erpelding told MLive.com that there’s no sign of resolution of the trade disputes that led to the job cuts.

The company makes high-purity silicon materials for use by semiconductor and solar ingot/wafer manufacturers.

Rules for posting comments

Comments posted below are from readers. In no way do they represent the view of Stephens Media LLC or this newspaper. This is a public forum.

Comments may be monitored for inappropriate content but the newspaper is under no obligation to do so. Comment posters are solely responsible under the Communications Decency Act for comments posted on this Web site. Stephens Media LLC is not liable for messages from third parties.

IP and email addresses of persons who post are not treated as confidential records and will be disclosed in response to valid legal process.

Do not post:

Potentially libelous statements or damaging innuendo.

Obscene, explicit, or racist language.

Copyrighted materials of any sort without the express permission of the copyright holder.

Personal attacks, insults or threats.

The use of another person's real name to disguise your identity.

Comments unrelated to the story.

If you believe that a commenter has not followed these guidelines, please click the FLAG icon below the comment.